The number-two goalscorer behind Archie Stark in the original American Soccer League, with 223 goals in his eight-year ASL career. The largest part of that time was with the Brooklyn Wanderers, whom he joined during the 1923-24 season and played for until being traded late in the 1927-28 season. During his four-plus seasons in Brooklyn, he scored 101 goals. By the 1928-29 season, he was with J&P Coats in Pawtucket, R.I., and then returned to New York to play for Nationals, but his career was ended by a knee injury in 1931 at the age of 26.

Nelson, although a prolific goalscorer, never played for an ASL champion team. The closest he came was in the 1924-25 season, when the Brooklyn Wanderers finished third in the 12-team league. Nelson led the ASL goals in only one season, with 39 goals in the “Atlantic Coast League” season of 1929-30.

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Founded in 1993 by American soccer historian Sam T.N. Foulds, the Society for American Soccer History (SASH) works to promote, facilitate, and disseminate research into the rich history of soccer in the United States.